Biology

Umbreon has a sleek black body with four slender legs and crimson eyes. There are two pairs of pointed teeth visible when its mouth is open, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower. It has long pointed ears and a bushy tail, each with a yellow band around them. Its forehead and legs have yellow rings on them. Its yellow markings glow at night and strike fear into anyone nearby. It hides in the darkness while waiting for its opponents, and its yellow rings glow when it leaps to attack. It is also capable of spraying a poisonous sweat whenever it gets agitated. This Pokémon is rare in the wild, and is more often found in urban areas under the care of people.

An Umbreon appeared in Team Eevee and the Pokémon Rescue Squad!, along with an Eevee and its evolved forms, under the ownership of Virgil. In a flashback, it was revealed that it evolved from an Eevee when it and Virgil got lost in a forest and had to spend a night there.

Origin

Umbreon's origins are uncertain, though it could be based on a black cat or possibly a black fox, a color variation of the red fox. Its long ears also are similar to those of a hare; numerous East Asian legends concern a Moon rabbit. The rings on Umbreon's body look like Egyptian lunar markings and jewelry that have been associated with animal sculptures, such as cat statues of Bastet and statues of the jackal god, Anubis, from Ancient Egypt. They may also be meant to resemble solar eclipses.

Name origin

Umbreon is a combination of umbra (Latin for shadow and ghost, as well as the English word for the moon's silhouette during a solar eclipse) and eon, a shortened form of evolution, the word also meaning an immeasurably long period of time (possibly referring to how long evolution takes naturally). Eon is a suffix all Eeveeevolutions share and was Eevee's English prototype name.

Blacky may be a combination of black and lucky, attributing the black cat in Japan that is considered lucky. It may also refer to the color of its coat.